1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to a two-piece pin and grommet, particularly for the fastening of a trim panel to a primary panel. The pin includes a flexible flange which, in combination with dual-height finger assemblies, provides a sealing function.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, it is known to provide a flexible flange or umbrella head as a sealing member in a pin and grommet or similar fastening device. A typical use of such a pin and grommet configuration is to secure a secondary panel, such as an automotive trim panel, to a primary panel, such as an automotive body panel. Examples of this include U.S. Pat. No. 5,651,634, entitled "Connection Between a Support and a Plate Element", issued on Jul. 29, 1997 to Kraus and U.S. Pat. No. 5,689,863, entitled "Clip", issued on Nov. 25, 1997 to Sinozaki. With the use of such a flexible flange, as the panel thickness increased, tension would increase until the head flattened. This increased tension resulted in improved sealing characteristics with respect to water, dust and sound. However, with thinner panels, there was less tension and the sealing characteristics degraded. As tooling techniques only allow for a certain amount of flex under the flexible flange or umbrella head, the panel thickness range and sealing capabilities are limited.
Fasteners with multiple height fingers to accommodate a variation in panel thicknesses are likewise known in the prior art, but have not provided adequate sealing such as is necessary in many applications, particularly automotive applications.